海角大神

South American heads of state dashed the hopes that Paraguay's president, ousted in a fast-track impeachment last week, will be reinstated as the country's chief executive.

While two regional groups on Friday unanimously condemned a lack of democracy in Paraguay after Fernando Lugo was removed from office in a matter of hours, and they banned the country from regional forums until new presidential elections are held next year, they failed to impose economic sanctions on Paraguay, giving the architects of Mr. Lugo's ouster little incentive to backtrack.

Defending the decision, Buenos Aires-based political scientist Atilio Boron says it was the correct move. 鈥淭he suspension leaves Paraguay on the margin of the legislative and executive bodies within Mercosur and Unasur,鈥� he explains. 鈥淭hankfully the presidents decided against economic sanctions. The aim isn鈥檛 to punish all Paraguayans.鈥�

In special meetings of the trade bloc Mercosur and the political bloc Unasur, in Mendoza, Argentina, Friday, leaders from across the region revoked Paraguay's membership from both bodies until presidential elections next year.聽

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Last week鈥檚 impeachment process in Paraguay 鈥� which many congressmen and analysts in the country have supported as part of a legal process enshrined in the Constitution to tackle a president 鈥減erforming poorly" 鈥� was widely condemned across political spectrum, from Bolivia's Evo Morales to Chile's right-leaning Sebasti谩n Pi帽era.聽Many commentators referred to it as an institutional coup.

But it has been the left-leaning leaders of South America, headed by Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, that have most vociferously condemned the events in Paraguay, rankling Paraguayan leaders. Now Venezuela, which had been agitating to join Mercosur - the trade grouping that comprises Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and, until yesterday, Paraguay 鈥� has been invited in. The proposal had been repeatedly blocked by Paraguay's right-leaning parliament. Paraguay鈥檚 suspension from the group cleared the way for the oil-rich nation鈥檚 fast-track membership by the end of next month.

Lugo, a former priest and Paraguay鈥檚 first leftist leader who came to power in 2008, was removed from office last Friday within 24 hours after an impeachment trial was brought against him. The opposition-led Chamber of Deputies and Senate overwhelmingly approved the nine charges for his 鈥減oor performance of duties鈥� as president.

The catalyst for the impeachment, attempted on previous occasions, was the standoff between police and landless peasants in Curuguaty, eastern Paraguay, two weeks ago that left 17 people dead 鈥� both peasants and police. Lugo, who maintains close links to the landless movement, was accused of inciting the protesters.

While Lugo's election was widely hailed across Paraguay, as it broke 61 years of rule by the Colorado Party, more than 30 of them under the Alfredo Stroessner dictatorship, he lost support among most sectors. Critics accused him of being passive and ineffectual as a leader.

His administration was also marred by personal drama, including a scandal involving children he fathered as a clergyman.

Lugo鈥檚 power base was always weak, forming a coalition with around 20 different parties, including the right-leaning Liberals, meaning he was never able to push through the reforms he wanted.

The toppled president was constantly at odds with Federico聽Franco, his Liberal vice president, who has since assumed the presidency. Earlier in the week, the new head of state said Mr. Franco would refuse to acknowledge Mercosur and Unasur鈥檚 findings.

For many commentators, events in Paraguay echo the coup in Honduras in 2009 when regional bodies such as the Organization of American States (OAS) failed to react effectively.

For Mr. Boron, Honduras didn鈥檛 have the institutions capable of facing up to the crisis there. 鈥淗onduras is in Central America and not a member of Mercosur or Unsaur,鈥� he says. 鈥淭here was no mechanism or body there able to impose [political] sanctions. It鈥檚 interesting to note that the US immediately recognized the new government in Honduras, but so far, there has been no official recognition of Federico Franco鈥檚 government.鈥�

Editor's note: the聽original聽story misstated the first name of Fernando Lugo.